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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. pit — a hole
  3. current — happening now
  4. current — of water
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. march — the month
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. saw — the tool
  9. spring — of water
  10. firm — steady
  11. stock — shares
  12. pit — in a race
  13. stock — goods
  14. stem — to come from
  15. spring — the season
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. march — music
  19. firm — a company
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. saw — the tool
  22. firm — decided
  23. current — electric
  24. spring — a coil

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com